Fruit clipper



Oct. 11,1932. L. M. HARVEY 138325.213

FRUIT CLIPPER Filed May 26, 1930 Patented Oct. 11, 1932 UNITED STA res PATE-Nll oFIca LE M. HARVEY, or 'Los ANGELES, CALIFORNIA FRUIT CLIPPER Application filed May 26, 1930. Serial No. 455,811.

This invention relates to fruit clippers, and an object is to provide an improved fruit clipper so designed that the parts thereof may be stamped or forged of metal and more economically manufactured than is possible 715 to the hands of the operator, which is frequently done in the use of other types of clippers.

Another object is to provide an improved means for attaching the-handle to the levers. A further object is to provide improved means for attaching a spring to the levers tor normally urging the jaws into open position.

Another object is to so design the implement that the two levers will be substantially identical in pattern, and thus are adaped to be stamped out of sheet metal by means of v the same blanking die, together with means for differently forming'the two levers after the blanking operations. I Other objects may appear as the description progresses.

In the accompanying drawing 1 have illustrated my improvements in the preferred torm, in which a 1 Fig.1 is a perspective view of my improved fruit clipper. 1 Figs. 2 and 3 are, respectively, top and bottom plan views of the two similar members hingedly connected together, with cer tain portions of the clipper omitted.

Fig. 4.- is a bottom plan view ofone of the members, and'Fig. 5 is a top plan view ofthe other member of a clipper embodying my improvements showing details of structure.

'7 45 Figs 6 is a transverse section of the assembled clipper online 6-6 of Fig. 1.

V Fig. 7 is a transverse section of the same on li11e.77 of Fig.1;

As shown in the drawing, my clippers include two sheet metal levers 1 and 2, which are similarly formed except torcertain details hereinafter mentioned,- and have apertures 3 and 4 respectively adapted to receive I a hinge screw 5 by means of which said members are pivotally held together. The upper side of member 2 has a circular boss Gearrounding the aperture 4, while the lower side of member 1 has a corresponding: depression 7 which 'pivotally receives the rib 4. i

The members 1 and 2 have correspondingly formed cutting jaws 8 and 9 on the forward ends thereof, and flat handle extensions 10 and 11 respectively rearwa'rdly oiithe hinge 5. The jaws 8 and:9 have cuttingedges 12 l and .13 respectively which radiate from the axis of the hinge .5, while the outer edgeslt and 1.5 of said jaws arearcuatelyitormed and extend to points rearwardly of the'hinge. 15 where they connect with shonl-der's 16 and 17 which also radiate from the axis of the hinge.

, The lower side of member 1 and the upper side of member 2 are provided, respectively, with correspondingly formed depressions 18 and 19 and shoulders 20 and 21 attlre inner extremities of said depressions respectively. Thus the shoulder 16 of'membe'rl is-adapted to engage the shoulder 20 of member 2, and the-shoulder 17 of member 2 is adapted to engage the shoulder 21 of member 'l, for limiting the opening of the jaws 8 and 9.

The members'l and 2 are provided inwardly of the shoulders 16 and 17'with arcaate edge portions '22 and 23, which are concentric with the axis-of said members, and are mov around the aperture '3, which is provided with flats 27, 27 adapted to receive a stop plate 28. Said plate has an aperture therein formed to 7 correspond to and to seat on the boss 26 and is held in position thereon by means'ot a nut 29 threaded onto .the hinge screw 5. The

stop plate 28 has a depressed forward portion .30 which rests above and extends over cutting jaws 8 and .9 so that when the clipper is'nsed for clipping the stems from fruit the portion ofplate 28 will limitthe movement of the stem into the. jaws to aproper position for clipping the stems. I

The member 2 is provided on its lower side with a beveled depression 31, which is adapted to receive thelhead 5 of thescrew 5, as shown in Fig; 6. Rearwardly of the hinge the handle extensions and 110i members 1 and 2 are providedwith elongatednotch'es 32 and 33 respectively, said notches being formed on the inner edges otthe extensions fornondetachably supporting handles and 35 thereon. Th handles are formed of shce't metal and are bent so as to provide recessesat 36 in'the outer portions thereof, while ;the;i-n-

ner portions of the handles are formedover the extensions 10, and 11, asshown in Fig. 7.

, Each of the handles'has a; lip. 37 extending downwardly and a similar lip I 38 extending upwardlyover the inn-er edge of the member 10 or 11 and within the notch 32 or 33-thereof, as the case may be. .The' handles being thus tightly formed around theextensions .10 and lland within the. notches 32and 33 are immovably held on the members 1 and 2.

(In this connection itlwill be observed that the members 1 and-2 are so formed that the extensions lOiand =11 are in the same plane, and saidmemhers have lugs 39 and140 at their inner extremities which receiveand support 1 the oppositeiends. of a compression spring-41.

Shoulders 42 and 43 are provided on the extensions-10' and 11 respectively, against which the inner ends of the handles 34 and 35 .abut. It will thus "be noted that the two members-1 and 2 are of substantiallysimilar form, and the arrangement, particularly of the shoulders 16 17 and 20-21 atpoints inwardly of the outer edges of said members,

i on the fiat'fac es of thelevers.

"prevents the fingers of an operator being' i caught therebetween and injuredyas in other types of clippers where thelimiting shoulders are'provided Ontheouter edges rather than Th central portions44 and 45 of members '1 and '2 respectively-are flatso that the two members may swing one on the other,.and said portions occupy slightly elevated or depressed planes with respectto the associated portionslO and 11 The cutting-edges 12 and 13 areof coursein the. sameplane, and as hereinbefore stated, the handle extensions10 and llare in the same plane, and in the die "forming operation. the members 1 and 2are the hand with the indexfinger an'dthumb "reverselv. formed 'so as to properly position the cuttingedgesand the handle extensions relative to each other. 5 I l ;When assembled as shown in Fig.1, spring 41 normally urges the jaws 8 and 9 into open position. p r

The device is usually held in the palm of overlying the outer edges 14 and 15 of the 1 cutting jaws. The open jawsarethenapplied to the fruit so that the stems'willenter the space between the'jaws and theforward 7 portion 30 of the stop plate will abut the stems. moved inwardly against the tension of the spring 41, and cutting edges 12 and 13 of the jaws will clip the stems from the fruit at a point close to the bottom of the pit of the fruit.

.The jaws v lnto the pit or depression around the stem,

but are sufi'iciently blunt so that the stem will:

inotbecuttooclose to the rind. When the pressure on the handles is released the spring 41' will again open the jaws preparatory to another operation... 1 A strap 46 of'leather or other suitable material is attached at its ends 47 on the lugs 39 and 40 beneath the extremities of the spring .41 so that the spring serves to hold the strap -in=.place on the handle. As shown in Fig. 1,

the strap is provided-with a central loop 7 overlying the upper side" of the clippers, while, they ends arebent downwardly under the inner ends of the handles and thence upwardly into. the recesses 36 of the handles, at

which points they are attached to the meme -bers10 and.11,as described and shown. The

strap is efi'ective for positioning the implement in the hands of a user and serves to prevent displacement oftheimplem'ent, and is of great convenient in the 'use' thereof. A:

particular advantage :of vthe'fruit clipper dis-.

closed herein resides in the fact thatthe outer edges of the levers on which thecutting jaws .are formed, as wellas the edges which; are

presented. to'the handfof an; operator, must be m oth and of a continuous and unbroken character. f I 1 V, h tI claim is versely" formed-complementary sheet metal levers'hingedly connected together and pro- .are formed so that they will i The handles 34 and 35 are then 1. A fruit clippercomprising a pair of re- -vided with fiat overlapping'axial portions,

cutting jaws bent therefrom into opposition wardly of the axis for engagement with said' firstmentioned shouldersto limit the spreading of said levers, said axial portions being cutaway from said last mentioned shoulders in the direction of the handle extensions to permit the-pivotal movement of said levers.

2. A fruit clipper/comprising a painof sheet metal levers adapted to be hin'gedly connected together and having overlapping flat "axial portions with jaws extended therefrom in one direction and handle extensions extended therefrom in an opposite direction, the outer margins of said axial portions being provided with shoulders radially disposed from the axis of the levers, said levers having identical depressions pressed into adjacent faces thereof intermediate the axial portions and said handle extensions and terminating in shoulders radially disposed from the axis of the levers and cooperating with the said peripheral shoulders to limit the spreading of the levers.

LEO M. HARVEY. 

